NL Architects recently unveiled a beautiful green-roofed office complex for the Welfare Department and Work Agency of the City of Groningen in the Netherlands. Featuring ample amounts of daylight, large open public spaces, and an ascending series of terraced green roofs, the new SoZaWe office is sure to welcome the citizens who come in for assistance while inspiring for the employees who work there.
All U.S. Presidents get a center named after them upon completion of their term in the White House, and George W. is no exception. Plans for his presidential center were just revealed, and considering how energy efficient his ranch in Crawford is, it really should come as no surprise that the new center is chock full of green design elements. To be located on the edge of the Southern Methodist University campus in Dallas, Texas, the George W. Bush Presidential Center will serve as a commemoration of all of his accomplishments [insert joke here].
Mark Twain had a garden shed; he called it “the loveliest study you ever saw…octagonal with a peaked roof, each face filled with a spacious window…perched in complete isolation on the top of an elevation that commands leagues of valley and city and retreating ranges of distant blue hills. It is a cozy nest and just room in it for a sofa, table, and three or four chairs, and when the storms sweep down the remote valley and the lighting flashes behind the hills beyond and the rain beats upon the roof over my head—imagine the luxury of it.”
But in recent times, the humble garden shed has become an outlet for designers to experiment in small spaces that often slide under the radar of zoning bylaws, providing extra room for study, relaxation or just getting away from everyone else.
Daniel Libeskind recently unveiled his remarkable design for the Kö-Bogen, a new mixed-use development in Germany. Set in downtown Düsseldorf, the retail and office complex is crowned with a grassy green roof and is designed to fit in with the surrounding historic architecture of Köenigsallee Boulevard. This lofted space connects two city blocks and creates a whole new zone for pedestrians, shoppers and employees to walk, run and enjoy open space in the heart of the city.
Weilburg, a medieval city not too far from Frankfurt, has announced plans to demolish a parking structure on the edge of its dense core and replace it with a mixed-use development with retail, residential and park space. Recently they revealed this beautiful proposal from ACME, which won the all-important public vote and second place from the professional jury. Inspired by the nearby Baroque terraced-landscape design of the Weilburg Castle Gardens, the Rathaus Terraces will feature green roofs, as well as natural ventilation and daylighting.
A recent competition earlier in 2009 held by the city of Chungju in South Korea made a call for a memorial space in the city’s United Nations Peace Park. Coming in at 3rd place was London-based firm ACME with their dramatic hive-like design. Drawing from the very core of what the United Nations is, this building is comprised of individual cells combined together to form a cube structure, mirroring how the UN is made up of individual countries who come together to form one entity. ACME’s proposal also includes an idyllic green roof and plenty of natural daylight.
Al Johnson’s Swedish Restaurant & Butik, photo Luanne Lozier
Green roofs are wonderful things; like a thick blanket, they keep roofs cool in summer and warm in winter. They have been around for centuries in Scandinavia and Iceland, where they moderate the cold winters and sometimes very hot summers. They reduce the “heat island” effect, where the air above and around the old black roofs gets hotter, making them hot properties in cities. Some, like Toronto have made them mandatory; other cities like Chicago give financial assistance to promote them. The provide habitat for birds and insects, even goats.
High school students in Revin, France will soon be attending classes in a stunning new terraced building covered in green roofs. Seen from above the new Lycee Jean Moulin school will simply appear as a terraced landscape, practically disappearing into the hillside. Designed by Paris-based, Off Architecture in association with Duncan Lewis Scape Architecture and Jeans Giacinto, this green roofed marvel is curvaceous and organic, blending into the countryside. We’re admittedly a bit jealous – our high schools weren’t nearly as cool.
Sports fans, get ready for a spectacular new experience – NBBJ recently revealed their design for China’s new Dalian Shide Stadium and it’s like nothing we’ve ever seen before. Built as though the stadium literally opened up from underground, two exterior walls of the structure are covered in grass and plants and the other two are open to connect the games with the city and allow glimpses of the intense action inside. Sustainability is a top priority and the design includes water recycling, daylighting, renewable energy and the beautiful and original living walls on the exterior.
A jaw-dropping feat of architecture has risen in the Italian city of Nola, just a stone’s throw away from the cataclysmic Mt. Vesuvius. Designed by Renzo Piano, Vulcano Buono is an epic cone-shaped commercial center crowned with a gorgeous sloping green roof. Piano’s “good volcano” contributes a vital new space to the southern edge of the Nola commercial district, which is the most most important freight terminal complex in southern and central Italy.
This gorgeous plaza near the wharf of Santa Cruz de Tenerife represents the connection between the nearby ocean and the various ecosystems of the Canary islands. Designed by Herzog + de Meuron, Plaza de España introduces a beautiful green space that builds upon the past of the site and the future of the city. Many years ago the plaza was the site of a “Castillo,” and the graphic motif in the basin of water represents the foundation of the old castle. Around the basin, many architectural landscape elements — including the two structures with green roofs — represent the Islands’ diverse ecosystems and topography.
One look at this office nestled amid the treetops and you might contemplate how to change your life in order to have a workspace with such an incredible view. Peter Frazier, a customer experience consultant, decided after years of working at an office and gaining over 50 pounds that he needed to make a change in his life – so he built this incredible office in the woods. Set amongst the trees above Chuckanut Bay in Bellingham, Washington, his lofted cube serves as a workspace and guest room, and it has a green roof on top too.
Israeli-based architect Zvika Tamari of TeaM Architects recently proposed a conceptual plan for the burgeoning city of Modiin in Israel that takes the form of an incredible grass-roofed eco-dome. Situated at the center of the city and surrounded by a series of green spaces, the Globe Ecological Hub functions as a museum and multi-use urban center that promotes sustainable living. The grass-crowned hub takes advantage of natural ventilation, daylighting, active solar systems, and a host of other green building strategies.
The US Postal Service can now add another notch to their sustainability belt – a huge green roof on top of their Morgan mail processing facility in NYC. The roof taps in at 2.5 acres of native, drought tolerant vegetation and is one of the largest green roofs in the nation. The seven story facility built in 1933 was originally built for the roof to serve as an extra mail processing location, and because of this was deemed strong enough to support a green roof. The new roof not only serves as a park and open space for employees, but will also save energy for the USPS and reduce stormwater runoff.
Like the rest of the Inhabitat crew, I get to spend a good part of my day ogling the finest futuristic farming fantasies that the interwebs have to offer. From towering vertical agriscrapes to vegetation-packed geodesic domes, my eyes are bombarded with images of the perfect urban farm daily, but when it comes to actually growing anything myself, I must admit rather sheepishly that I don’t know my sugar snap peas from my snopeas. Well, all of that is about to change because Rooftop Farms, a real-life 6,000 square foot organic vegetable farm with a view of the Manhattan skyline is now open to anyone who wants to lend a hand. Luckily for me, that hand need not be blessed with a green thumb…yet.
In 1999, The Greater Toronto Airport Authority (GTAA) set out to create a revolutionary fire and emergency services training facility that uses the newest and most innovative environmentally-conscious building standards. The result is this $13.5 million state-of-the-art training facility designed by Kleinfeldt Mychajlowycz Architects, which was awarded the Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) Silver Rating. The structure not only provides a healthy place to live and work, it reduces waste sent to landfills, conserves energy and water, and reduces harmful greenhouse gas emissions.
The tightly-knit family of designers and innovators at the Onion Flats collective is raising the bar on innovation for Philadelphia architecture. They have discovered that by taking over the responsibility for everything from a project’s initial conceptual design, all the way to the financing, marketing, and construction, it has allowed them to explore totally new processes for things like water collection and green roofs, without the headache of outsourcing. Completed in 2006, one of their most notable projects are the Rag Flats, a group of modern residential units topped with green roof gardens, solar panels, and lounge spaces, which are built within the shell of a former rag factory.
Not only did this Tulsa loft give Oklahoma its very first LEED certification — it went platinum. Local architect Shelby Navarro pulled out every green design strategy in the book for this project from geothermal heating to a bison-grass green roof and recycled glass floors. Consisting of two attached lofts, the home is just a short walk from shopping and a block from a bike trail in Tulsa’s up-and-coming Cherry Street District neighborhood.
Even when the most sustainable methods of construction are employed it’s a given that whenever you build something new there will be, for better or worse, a visual impact to the landscape. Polish architecture firm KWK Promes decided to embrace that inevitability and build their design for a new home beneath a grassy mound of land. By essentially lifting the existing land and placing it on the roof, the OUTrial house maintains a subtle presence and pays service to the surrounding landscape.
Fading right into the Big Sur landscape, this three-bedroom house is nearly invisible when viewed from certain angles. And that’s just how Mickey Muennig, the mastermind behind the project, wanted it. The 74-year old architect kept the environment in mind when he designed the sod roof and seeded it with native grasses and wildflowers. The roof is part of a garden that starts at Cooper Point, Big Sur, and stretches out to the Pacific Ocean.
While most people might see New York City as a densely developed, built-up city with little space for greenery, Brooklyn-based Alive Structures sees the opportunity to make open green space — and has actively created it up on the rooftops of NYC buildings. The business, founded by Marni Horwitz, has made a name for itself by planting native groundcovers and wildflowers in their green roof and living wall installations. Green roofs, besides being more pleasant to look at than concrete, improve air quality, reduce energy dependence, and provide native habitats for wildlife. And what’s especially exciting is that Alive Structures will be offering tours of one of their installed green roofs in East Village, the Wild Project Theater, for NYC Wildflower Week on May 2. Tours of the Wild Project Theater green roof will be given from 10 am to 5 pm at 195 3rd Street in the East Village.
Graft Architects has wowed us again with this spectacular living hill high rise concept complete with a giant green roof that drapes over the top and down the sides. The AO Project is restricted by size, height, and setbacks, and so it expands from its confines and improves the space with lots of lush vegetation.
New York City’s urban grid is dense, so when new developments pop up, we root for intelligent and environmentally-positive design that balances out the concrete with a little bit of greenery. Architect Enrique Norten and his NYC-based firm, TEN ARQUITECTOS, are in the midst of building a mixed-use high-rise in Hell’s Kitchen called Clinton Park, which will provide some much-needed green space to concrete jungle on the west side. The unusual stepped roof and S-shaped design reminds us a bit of terraced farming — an age-old agricultural method — and provides ample space for budding urban gardeners to sow their seeds. When you consider the stepped terrace with the contemporary look-and-feel of the building’s facade, we know this green and attractive addition to the urban grid is sure to please future residents.
On the western outskirts of Shanghai, China, a dragon is coming to life. Constructed of concrete, steel and glass, the new corporate headquarters of Giant Pharmaceutical Corp looks for all the world like something between a sci-fi battleship landing on a highway, and a steampunk dragon frozen in time. L.A.-based architectural firm Morphosis is focusing on the building’s sustainability as much as its aesthetics, with a green roof, generous use of skylights, and advanced insulation materials like cement-fiberboard paneling and a double-layer, fritted-glass curtain wall.
Generally associated with plastic and wooden 55 gallon drums covered with slimy moss, rainwater harvesting just doesn’t seem to capture the imagination like an exotic green roof or a gleaming solar array — until now. The CISTA rainwater harvesting system (which we just spotted on Kohler’s new H2OVisions website) is a dramatic, elegant and space-saving solution for the urban environment that conserves water, increases green space and just might finally bring rainwater harvesting the kind of attention it deserves.
Can’t decide on a green roof or a vertical garden? No problem, just do both! R&Sie Architects designed the aptly-named ‘Lost in Paris‘ house for an ‘urban witch’ who feeds the house through 300 glass-blown pods. A potion of rainwater and plant nutrients nourishes 1200 ferns drop-by-drop throughout the year. The houseplants are entirely hydroponic, and completely engulfing the 1400 square foot concrete home. The blanket of ferns protects the house from outside elements and regulates its inside temperature, all the while adding life and freshness to the neighborhood.
The debate is still out on what kind of puppy Malia and Sasha will get. It seems the choices have been narrowed down to two dogs – a Labradoodle or a Portuguese Water Dog, both are very sweet, cuddly, and soft, not to mention hypoallergenic, which was a main criteria in deciding what kind of puppy to get. Now that they are getting closer to having a First Dog, the Obama Family needs to discuss housing options. We’re excited to announce that Sustainable Pet Design has created a house specifically for the Obama Dog and modeled it after traditional presidential architecture. Their Greenrrroff Animal Homes are customized pet homes made from red cedar with beautiful green roofs.
Deep in the northern chill of Iceland, just outside the arctic circle, the Hof House sits snugly within its landscape. Built on an existing estate, Studio Granada Architects salvaged whatever materials possible from the site to be incorporated into the new residence, converting telegraph poles into a sun screen and basalt pillars into stepping stones. Even the grass on the green roof came from local site leftovers after clearing way for its foundation. Designed for the extreme weather conditions of the Skagafjörður Fjord, the Hof House relies on passive solar design, geothermal heating, and some pretty hefty concrete walls.
Monterey Bay Shores is a stunning new development set to break ground this month that will convert a desolate disused sand mine into a thriving environmental preserve and eco-resort. Replete with living walls and a five acre green roof, the development boasts an impressive list of green design elements and is working towards LEED Platinum certification. Now, saying that you’re the “Greenest Eco Resort” is quite a claim, but if the Resort builds out all that they have promised, it really will be the most environmentally friendly resort in the US, and possibly in the world.
Nestled beneath an undulating series of rolling green roofs, Kjellgren Kaminsky Architects New Heden project transforms a vacant city block is a self-contained sustainable city interspersed with cycling paths and walkways. Envisioned as a “green lung” for Gothenburg, Sweden, the development will introduce a beautiful expanse of fresh green space to an area currently consumed by parking lots and football fields.
This gorgeous crystalline structure is the new home of the Spertus Institute of Jewish Studies in Chicago. Designed by Krueck + Sexton Architects, the building’s layout is focused around the use of natural light, and its contemporary design sets it apart from the surrounding 19th Century masonry buildings. A beautiful multifaceted facade symbolizes the institute’s mission and logo, which features a flame accompanied by the phrase yehi, which means “let there be light”.
Ushida Findlay Architects (UFA) recently received permission to build this gorgeous eco-friendly, multi-family Park House compound in Preston, UK. The stunning design incorporates sustainable elements such as solar power, extensive use of natural light, and locally-sourced materials, but its defining element is certainly the undulating green roof that links the homes of five branches of a single family.
When Japanese architect Endo Shuhei adds another delectable design to his repertoire, you can expect a project title just as incredible as the structure itself. He names each of his projects by letter and then style, with appellations ranging from “rooftecture”, to “slowtecture”, to “refurbitecture” and beyond. His recently completed ‘Bubbletecture H’ building in Hyogo is the 8th (Hth) project he has created that is bursting with bubbly bulges and arches. Designed with curves of the land in mind, this open-air environmental education center aims at minimizing its environmental impact while blending in naturally.
After nearly a decade in the making, Renzo Piano’s California Academy of Sciences is set to open this week – and Inhabitat recently took a sneak peak inside the incredible new institution! A crowning achievement of sustainable architecture, the Academy will house 38,000 live animals and is on track to receive LEED platinum. It is currently the only institution in the world to feature an aquarium, a natural history museum, a living rainforest, a planetarium, and world-class research and education programs – all housed under a 2.5 acre green roof. Read on for a tour of the museum’s many splendors!
This striking slate gray structure unfolds from its verdant environs with a low-profile envelope that rises out from under a grassy hill. Constructed by G ateliers Architecture in Guatapé-Antioquia, Colombia, it’s one of a series of 8 ecological shelters that make strident efforts to seamlessly integrate modern architecture with local topography.
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